Peter Kirwan
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Venus & Adonis (Little Angel) @ The Little Angel Theatre
April 6, 2007
My ‘Complete Works’ may be over, but several of the productions that made it up are not yet! ‘Coriolanus’ is off on tour, ‘King Lear’ is still playing in the Courtyard and ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ returns to the Swan in April. On Wednesday I went for my second viewing of yet another production, ‘Venus …
The Completed Works
March 31, 2007
So, that’s it! After a year of theatregoing, and even longer of planning and buying tickets, I’ve finished the Complete Works. I’ve seen all fifty-four main productions in the Festival, as well as a smattering of Fringe productions, talks, events and happenings. I’ve spent a great deal of money, moved house twice, had one relationship …
King Lear (RSC) @ The Courtyard Theatre
I don’t wish to come across as unprofessional, but this is going to be a very difficult review to write. Last night I sat in the front row for Trevor Nunn’s ‘King Lear’, and I still don’t feel as if I’ve entirely recovered. It was theatre as I’ve rarely experienced it- theatre that reaches inside …
Old friends: Richard Goulding and John Heffernan
One of the satisfying things about seeing the entire Complete Works has been the opportunity to see actors – often in the smaller parts- returning to the stage again and again, excelling in parts and coming to audience’s attentions. Rob Carroll is a good example- a bit player in the ‘Antony’/’Caesar’/’Tempest’ company, who got to …
The Merchant Of Venice (Theatre for a New Audience) @ The Swan Theatre
March 29, 2007
The ‘lasts’ are coming thick and fast. Gregory Doran, according to reports from his creative team talk, was frustrated at the focus on the ‘lastness’ of his production, it being the final play to be performed in the RST before its closure. Tonight, there were three more lasts. The last visiting (and international) company, the …
F.Murray Abraham talk @ The Swan Gallery
Firstly, I want to say that F. Murray Abraham is one of the nicest ‘famous’ people I’ve ever met. In a pre-event chat with my supervisor and an RSC events manager, he still insisted on bringing me into the conversation, asking me my opinions and generally welcoming me into a discussion I wasn’t even sure …
Before the Bardathon
March 25, 2007
As we enter the final week of my year-long project, I’m going to be posting a few retrospective entries in addition to the final couple of reviews. First up, I thought for interest I’d mention my PREVIOUS Shakespeare theatre-going. I haven’t been attending the theatre as long as many people think. Being a Northerner born-and-bred, …
The Tempest (RSC) @ The Novello Theatre
March 20, 2007
I’ve been very unfair to this production of ‘The Tempest’. I’ve seen it twice before, but the first time I was distracted for personal reasons, and the second we were severely late, so I’ve never been in a position to sit down and simply enjoy it. Last night remedied that, in an evening that made …
Venus & Adonis: A Masque For Puppets (Little Angel) @ The Swan Theatre
March 16, 2007
One of the problems with revivals is that the press aren’t particularly concerned second time around. ‘Venus and Adonis’ doesn’t have a press night during its week-long stay at the Swan, and all professional reviews of it are buried deep in internet archives. A large proportion of the Stratford audience saw it in 2004, when …
As You Like It (Sheffield Theatres) @ The Swan Theatre
March 9, 2007
‘As You Like It’ is my least favourite Shakespeare play to watch. It’s interesting enough to read, and funny, but every production I’ve seen of it – the BBC film, the recent RSC production, the Christine Edzard film, even the half hour animated version – has left me bored. Having seen some negative reviews of …
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